A Rose by Any Other Name
by HolyOrdersOtaku
Summary: Ruby has carried a secret for so long out of fear of what others might think, but with Blake's revelation of being faunus, she feels that maybe now is the best time to tell her friends about who she really is. Rated T for mild language and mild sexual reference.
1. Hoka no Namae Ni Yoru Rōzu

Hoka no Namae Ni Yoru Rōzu

他の名前によるローズ

* * *

Ruby had always been fairly confident and sure of herself in most of her endeavors. She had a few bumps in the road, to be sure. Taking the mantle of team RWBY's leader was by far the largest hump in that road she traveled, but she felt that she had risen to meet the challenge as best she could. Now she faced a dilemma. Her own personal demons, as it were.

Several weeks ago, Blake had run away when she was revealed to be a faunus. Ruby, Weiss, and Yang searched diligently to bring her back home to tell her that they didn't care that she was a faunus. They loved Blake for who she was, and she needed to know that her ears didn't make her any less of a person in their eyes. Sure, Weiss had the most trouble out of this at first, but even the heiress was able to overcome her prejudice over faunus for the sake of Blake.

_The next time something _this_ important comes up_, Weiss had told the black haired faunus. _Come to your team mates._ She said those words with so much care in her voice that Ruby almost envied Blake. That was the level of care she so longed for should she ever expose her most personal of secrets. That was what she truly desired, yet she felt it wouldn't be possible. Not yet.

No one knew. None of her friends of Signal knew, her sister and her father never knew, and her friends here at Beacon most certainly did not know. Many thought that Ruby was as easy to read as large print book, but even she was able to keep secrets. She felt she had no choice but to bottle this secret up ever since she understood what it meant. The implications were jaw dropping, and the repercussions were far too risky for her to even imagine revealing said secret. Until recently. Everyone accepted Blake for who she was. This gave Ruby something to think about. Maybe, just _maybe_, she should tell her friends and family this secret. Or maybe she shouldn't. She couldn't decide.

Every dormitory building had a lounge on the first floor. In it resided a large television, several couches, some vending machines, a card table, and a pool table. Ruby found herself wrapped in her own cloak sitting on one of these couches, staring out of the window lost in thought. Night had fallen, and the only sight she could see through it was the light of the lamps all over campus. The idea of revealing her secret had been floating around her head for days, and tonight was no different. _Should I? _she asked herself repeatedly.

She was so lost in her own mind that she didn't hear someone approach her from behind. "Ruby? What are you doing down here?" Startled, she almost fell off of the couch. Turning her head slightly as she steadied herself, she saw Jaune standing over her, wearing a pair of pajama pants and a black tank top, the word _apology_ plastered on his face seemingly. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"T-that's fine. I wasn't paying attention, is all. What's up?"

"I just came to grab a can of soda from the vending machine before bed. I know it's not healthy, but I was thirsty and I just had to do the Dew, y'know?" To emphasize this, he held up a green can of soda.

Ruby nodded before looking him over from head to toe. "What are you _wearing_?"

Jaune smiled. "You like it? Pyrrha bought the clothes for me. She said that I should try some normal sleep attire for a change. You know, I'm really digging it."

Giggling, Ruby smiled. "I didn't know I had bought tickets."

"Tickets?" Jaune asked. "What?"

She pointed at his surprisingly muscular arms. "To the gun show."

Jaune rolled his eyes with a smile. "That was a bad joke."

"You should hear some of Yang's puns."

Jaune giggled. "I _have_." He gestured towards Ruby. "You never answered my question. What are you doing down here. You're usually with your team having a blast right now."

Ruby's smile vanished as she gazed into Jaune's eyes for a moment before they returned to the window. "I've just had something on my mind lately that I'm unsure about."

"Uh oh," Jaune whispered gently. Sitting down next to his friend, he put a hand on her shoulder. "Want to talk about it?"

"That's what I'm thinking about. I don't know if I _should_ talk about it." Turning to face Jaune, she saw the genuine concern he held for her in his eyes. He was a true friend. "You know about Blake, right?"

"About her being a Faunus? Of course. Though, I'm under the impression only RWBY and JNPR know, right?"

"Yeah. We're respecting her wishes to keep it quiet. All the same, she's still completely accepted by both of our teams. Their opinion of her hasn't changed in the slightest."

Jaune raised an eyebrow in confusion. "And thats...bad?"

"What? No! No, that's a _good_ thing, for sure. But, it got me thinking about myself a little bit." She breathed deeply before asking her question. "I have a secret, Jaune. It's a secret about myself that I've kept quiet for a long time, and I never planned to tell anyone. I want to, but I just can't. But seeing Blake being accepted for who she is got me thinking that maybe _now_ is the right time to reveal it."

He nodded. "But you're afraid that no one will accept it, right?"

Ruby nodded.

"Want my opinion?" She nodded again. "You don't have to tell me. You don't have to tell anyone if you don't want to. But we're your _friends_, and we're your comrades as well. If you can trust us to keep you alive in a battle, the you might be able to trust us with this secret of yours. We all care about you, Ruby. Don't let something like this get in the way of your relationships. Eventually, you will probably _have _ to let it out. Why not get a head start?"

Ruby stared at Jaune with wonder in here eyes. She gave him a quick hug as she stood up. "Thank you, Jaune." She started to walk to the stairwell. "Remind me to tell you my secret sometime, okay?"

"You know you don't have to," he said.

She nodded. "But if my team accepts it, then I'll have the courage to tell everyone." _Especially if my partner approves, _she thought. Racing up the stairs as fast as she could, she made it to the door. Her heart was pounding. She wasn't sure if it was her nerves, the running she'd just done, or both. Either way, she was scared. She'd never felt so scared in her life, but she now felt that this had to be done.

Entering the room, she found her three team mates attending to various personal tasks. Yang was brushing her hair, Blake was reading a book, and Weiss was polishing her nails. "Welcome back," Yang said cheerfully. Turning to face her younger sister, she froze. "You okay, sis?" she asked, having noticed the worry that was evident on Ruby's face.

"I'm fine," she lied. "Or, at least I hope I am. Or will be." She shook her head. "Could the three of you please be seated. I...I have an announcement to make and I'd prefer if you were seated together for this. You know, make it easier to look at all of you at once. Right? Right." _Damn my nerves_¸ she thought.

Weiss and Yang shrugged, and the two opted to join Blake on her bed. "What's this about?" Yang asked.

"Something change in our class schedule?" Weiss inquired.

"No, nothing like that. This is...um...personal." Yang raised an eyebrow. Taking a deep breath, Ruby set her gaze to Blake. "Blake, you know we all care for you. We found out that you're a faunus when you wanted to hide it, but we don't care about that. Your ears don't make you any less of a person to us. You know that, right?"

Blake nodded. "Yeah, and I really appreciate it, but we've already made up on that, haven't we?"

"We have," Ruby said. "I just wanted to make sure that you all understand that I hope you will look at me the same as you always have. Like Blake's ears, our traits don't dictate who were are as people. "

"Ruby," Yang started. "What's this about?"

Ruby saw her sister's love and concern in her eyes. "Girls, I want you to know that I really, _really_ don't want to say this, but I have a secret. A secret that I've closely guarded ever since I understood what it meant. No one, not even you, Yang, has ever known this about me." Taking another deep breath, she clenched her fist. _It's now or never!_ "I'm...I'm gay," she finally said at long last.

Shock. That was the best way to describe the looks on the other girls' faces. "Ruby," Yang started.

"I know it's not normal, and that its frowned upon and most of the time it's even hated by others, but this is something I've kept secret for a very long time. I don't really know when I first realized it, but once I knew it was true, I knew that I couldn't tell anyone. Even now, I don't know if telling you three was a good idea, but I...I _hope_ that this doesn't change your view of me."

Yang stood up and embraced her sister. "Oh, Ruby. You know you didn't have to tell us this if you didn't want to, right?"

"I...I know. But I felt that if I was ever going to tell you, it had to be now."

Hugging even tighter, Yang smiled as she held her sister in her loving embrace. Pulling away, she showed her beautiful smile to Ruby. "That was very brave of you, Ruby. You're still my little sister. I don't care if you're a lesbian or not, I'll love you just the same."

Blake smiled and nodded. "It's really no different from my situation, Ruby. If I were to shun you for your lifestyle, it'd be no different than if someone were shunning me for being a faunus. I can't, and I won't, judge you for this."

Ruby turned to Weiss; the real tough nut of the team. Ruby was afraid of what her partner would say or think the most. "Weiss?" she asked her partner. "What do you think."

Weiss sat silently in thought for a moment. "What do I think?" she asked. "I think it's strange," she finally said. After a moment, she smiled. "Strange though it may be, you are still you. I was foolish enough once to believe my father's bigoted views on faunus. I'll not make the same mistake towards you, Ruby."

The brunette felt true joy as she heard those words. Her friends were _okay_ with her homosexuality. Maybe it wasn't all that bad after all. Maybe she could finally express herself to the fullest. Maybe she could finally tell Weiss the truth; tell her partner exactly how she felt. "I...Since you all accept that part about me, I have one more confession to make."

Weiss groaned. "That better not have been a joke to test us, Ruby!"

"No! No, I'm really gay. Like, super gay. The final form of gay, okay?" Taking one final deep breath, she stared directly into Weiss's eyes. "Weiss, this is actually about you. You see..."

"Ruby," Yang said with a soft, cautionary tone. "I know where this going. You don't need to do this to yourself."

"I need to do this, Yang," Ruby replied, turning to her sister.

"I don't want your heart to break," the elder sister said sadly.

"I'd rather know that I tried to do this and failed than to never have tried at all." Returning her gaze to Weiss. "Weiss, you're the best partner anyone could ask for. Sure, you're a bit cranky, but you mean well. You're gentle when needed, and tough when you need to be harder. And, you're beautiful. The most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

Weiss gasped. "Oh. Oh, Ruby, no," she whispered, realizing as well where this was going.

"I...I love you, Weiss. I think I did from the start, when you and I first met. As frustrating as that was for both of us, I hadn't interacted with anyone like that before. Something about it was so _likable_. I know you probably don't feel the same way." Clenching her fists, she prepared for what was soon to follow. "There. I came out and I confessed my feelings all at the same time."

She gazed into Weiss's eyes, waiting for a response. Weiss was terrified. "Oh, Ruby," she said sadly. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. You're a wonderful friend." She laughed a short chuckle. "Admittedly, you're my first real friend. And I'm flattered that you have such affection for me. But, I'm afraid I don't feel the same way. It's not that I won't, of course, but rather that I can't feel that way. I'm...I'm not like you." Weiss fought back tears, knowing that she'd just torn down her leader's world; she'd just broken her best friend's heart.

Ruby had no such luck with her own tears. They began to stream down her face as the inevitable rejection washed over her. "S-so that's it, then," she said. "It's all out on the table. I-I think I m-might be able to..." Before she could finish her statement, she burst into tears, letting loose all of the sadness.

Yang approached and embraced her sister. "Shh," she said soothingly, attempting calm her sister. "It's alright, Ruby. It's going to be fine." The sisters spun around so that Ruby was looking away from Weiss, and Yang met the heiress's gaze. Weiss was afraid that Yang might hold her in contempt, but she saw in the blonde's eyes a tender love for her sister, and something else. Forgiveness. Yang didn't hold it against Weiss.

This made the heiress breathe a sigh of relief. She never wanted to break Ruby's heart, and she never wanted Yang as an enemy. That being said, she couldn't stand to see Ruby crying so much. Someone who was usually so happy an upbeat should never cry. Weiss gestured to the door and indicated that she going out for a bit. Yang nodded in understanding.

Quietly, she left the room. In the hall she ran into Jaune. "Is everything okay? I heard crying," he said.

Weiss nodded subtly. "We're fine," she said. "I've...I've hurt Ruby in a way I never wanted to, though." Hugging herself, she shook her head. "We'll be fine. Thanks for the concern, Jaune." Caught off guard by Weiss's demeanor, he just nodded before returning to his room as the heiress made her way down the hall to the stairwell. She finally found herself in the lounge area where she sat down on the couch, hugging her knees while she stared out of the window into the dark night. She lost track of time for a while as she sat there, silently in thought.

At some point, she even zoned out to the point where she didn't hear anything around her in the room. She felt a cold touch on her left arm, causing her to look. "Hey, princess," Yang greeted, holding a can of iced coffee in offering to Weiss. "Thought you could use some caffeine. I know you're an addict and all."

Weiss smiled. "Thanks," she said as she accepted the can.

Yang plopped onto the couch next to her and open c can of her own. "I know it's not exactly a cup of the fresh coffee grounds you're used to, but we commoners have some pretty good stuff for this cheap price."

"I may be aristocracy, Yang, but I'm not _that_ far gone. I've been living with you _commoners_ for this long, haven't I? If anything, I rather enjoy how simplistic a lot of these products are." Sipping from her can delicately, Weiss's gaze returned to the window. "How is she?"

"She fell asleep just a few minutes ago. She was still crying when I hoisted her up to bed, but she should be fine now," Yang answered. "She's such a brave girl, coming out like she did. I'm proud of her."

"So, you really didn't know did you?"

"What? Me? No. I had no idea. Usually there are signs, but she's apparently gone the extra mile to keep it secret. No one but us knows from the look of it."

"I see," Weiss whispered. "Yang, I'm sorry. I didn't want to do that to her. To see her cry is the most heart wrenching thing I've ever had to witness, and it hurts even more to know that I'm at fault. I hope you don't despise me for it."

"I was actually gonna say that I'm proud of you as well." Yang sipped at her coffee for a moment. "You actually handled that very well. I was worried at first, but you did the best you could given the situation."

Weiss nodded. "I feel bad for her. She loves someone who can never love her back in the same way. I wish that I could, but I can't. I can only be her friend."

Yang smiled. "You do love her, though. Just not in the way she wishes you did. You care for my sister as a friend. Your best friend, in fact. Blake feels the same way. And I'm her sister. I'm kind of required to love her; not that I would ever complain. She's just a ball of love that everyone else gets to love in their own way." Another sip from her coffee. "And I do understand what she feels. I'm kind of on the bisexual side of things, myself."

"R-really?" Weiss said, shocked. "I had no idea."

"Well, I prefer men primarily, but every now and again there comes along a girl who strikes my fancy." Yang patted Weiss's head teasingly. "Don't worry, princess, you're not my type."

"Oh, so who would be your type?" Weiss asked, trying to tease back.

"Hmm," Yang went into thought for a moment. "Blake's hot, I suppose. Then there's Pyrrha. She's the only other friend I know that has a rack that can compete with my own."

"Okay, this is getting weird," Weiss said with a blush. "Does...does Blake know?"

"Hm? Oh, no. I would never dream of telling her. Unlike Ruby's fascination with you, my attraction towards Blake is purely physical. I love her as a close friend; I just also happen to fantasize about her body. No romantic desires what so ever."

Weiss scoffed. "Of course, out of all of my friends, _you_ had to be the dirty old man of the group."

"But seriously," Yang chimed, drawing the heiress back to her full attention. "Do me a favor. Don't act any differently around Ruby."

"What do you mean?"

"As you may have realized, Ruby's relationships require physical contact. She has to touch her friends; to feel that they're there. Hand on the shoulder, leaning back to back, hugs, etc...they're all a protective social defense mechanism to remind herself that she's not alone. So now we know she's gay, and that she has feelings for you, and that will feel awkward for a while, but if you start to distance yourself from her it'll only hurt her even more."

Weiss nodded. "You're right. I don't want to do that."

"She may, in fact, try to do it to herself for your sake. Don't let her. Make sure she knows that while you may not love her the way she wants, you do still love her as a friend." Standing up, Yang held out her hand for Weiss. "Ready to head up?"

Accepting Yang's hand as she stood, the pair returned to the dorm room to prepare for bed. As Weiss lay down and turn her lamp out, she could hear Ruby still sniffling in her sleep.

* * *

Ruby seldom slept in. That tear fest she had last night was the most she'd cried in a long, long time, so it's no surprise that she fell straight into a deep sleep when she went to bed. Upon waking up in the morning, she found that she was alone. Confused, she climbed down and looked around. Sitting on her writing desk was a piece of stationary paper that hadn't been there before. In beautiful caligraphy writing, it said:

_Good morning, Ruby. We're waiting for you in team JNPR's room._

_-Team RWBY_

"Huh," she said. "What's this about?" Without bothering to change out of her pajama's, she slowly opened her dorm door and crossed the hall. She knocked gently, and upon hearing someone say "It's open" she entered.

_"GOOD MORNING RUBY!"_ everyone inside cheered excitedly as she entered, feeling completely stunned. Everyone was standing around a small folding table, and on the table was a cake that said _Good Work Ruby_ on it.

"W-what the hell is going on?" she asked.

"Well," Jaune said, smiling the whole while. "We heard about what happened last night, so we decided to throw you a little party to show you our support."

"What?"

"I know it was kind of rude," Yang said. "But we felt that JNPR needed to know as well. And guess what? They don't care about your sexuality either!"

"That's right," Pyrrha said as she gave Ruby a gentle hug. "You're still Ruby. Who you decide to love is your own business."

Blake cleared her throat. "But we do appreciate you letting us into your life. Telling us about your sexuality was a big risk on your part, I know, but now you'll never have to be afraid of what we think."

Nora cheered excitedly. "Enough with the sappy friend speeches! She's here now, so let's eat some _cake_!"

Weiss stepped forward and also gave Ruby a hug. "Uh, Weiss? Are you hugging me?"

"That's what friends are for, you dolt. Don't ever forget that." Pulling away, Weiss flashed a beautiful smile that melted Ruby's soul. "I hope you like the cake. It was my idea."

Yang cut into the cake and gave Ruby the first slice. Dumbfounded, Ruby stared in wonder at the cake before she laughed. "I _love_ it!" she declared as she took a bite out of the seven layer rainbow cake.

* * *

誰が愛のために移動することは千マイル長くないものよりを見つけることができます。 [Who travels for love finds a thousand miles not longer than one.]

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

I hate my life at times. I had been up waiting for my sister to come home from work. She gets home, and we watch a movie until 3AM when we decide to go to sleep. I come to my room, lay down, and immediately get back up to write as much of this as I physically could. My favorite ideas ALWAYS keep me from sleeping. I wrote like 2500 words before I went to sleep at 4AM. Now it's done and I feel sleepy as hell.

I don't really know why I wanted to write this. The idea hit me and I thought it was really sweet. It's not all that strange either. I'm heterosexual, but the sheer number of shipfics I've got in my favorites and in my own cache of stories shows my opinion on homosexuality. To summarize it, I can quote Pyrrha: Who you decide to love is your own business. Love is love, as I see it, so I never really questioned homosexuality. Which is odd, because I am actually religious, and I live in a region of the united states where homosexuality is very much frowned upon. Then again, my own hobbies are frowned upon where I'm from, so I guess there's a little bit I can relate to: just not much.

Please leave a review to let me know what you think. :D

Bonus: I kinda want to write more of this storyline, but I don't know if I will. If I do, I have a name motif planned (as I do with most of my stories. I do love my name motifs for my chapters.) Can you guess what this motif might be? I really like it! :D

**_UPDATE_**:May 7, 2015: I am continuing this story, and will end it with a little proverb. I don't know if you've figured it out yet, but I'm naming each chapter "A Rose By Any Other Name", but it will be in a different language. Ergo, each chapter is the same name, but in a different language it is spoken and said differently, making it the same name. It's basically my way of saying, "Just because something looks different doesn't mean its not sweet or endearing." The full phrase is "A rose by any other name would smell just as sweet." I don't know if that's the intended meaning, but that's the meaning I take away from it. I feel like I'm cheating by explaining this since I tend to leave my subtle wordplay up to interpretation, as I never have a clear message for the reader. In fact, my stories will take on different meanings as time progresses. _The Longest Night_ had a different meaning for me when Monty died. That's a different matter. This time around, I do have a clear message.

I think what I'm trying to explain with this story is thus; we're all human. We're all different. We're all roses who go by different names. And as such, we're all of different ethnicity, gender, ideology, opinion, religion, sexuality, culture, and language. My view of the world is not the same as yours. But we can share it together...but enough about that for now.

Jusqu'à la prochaine fois, mes amis. [Until next time, my friends.]


	2. Une Rose par Tout Autre Nom

Un Rose par Tout Autre Nom

* * *

"And then there was that time that I was playing guitar for her," Jaune said to Ruby as the two of them sat in team RWBY's room, conversing back and forth.

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Ruby said, nodding. "I'll be honest, that wasn't a very good attempt. I mean, it's nice that you can play guitar, but your singing is rather subpar, you know."

"What's your object of comparison?"

"Uh...Weiss," Ruby said with an excited nod.

Jaune sighed heavily. "Yeah, it is kinda hard with that comparison."

She patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, it's not all bad. Like I said, you can play guitar. That attracts lots of girls."

"Just not Weiss," he replied before he laughed suddenly. "Or you for that matter."

Ruby giggled. "Yeah, no man can get to me."

The door opened, and in came Weiss; she'd been out running errands. She spotted Ruby and Jaune laughing and talking to each other, and she gave the two of them a quick glance, smiling all the while. "Do I even want to know what you two are talking about?"

"Behold, Weiss!" Ruby declared. "We are the founding members of our own club!"

"And today is its first meeting!" Jaune added.

Weiss chuckled. "You two are acting like children, you know that? And what, dare I ask, is the name of this club?"

Ruby and Jaune stood together and struck a pose. "The _We've Been Rejected By Weiss_ club!" they announced in unison. Weiss rolled her eyes. Ruby smiled widely as she continued. "If recent trends keep up, we may have more members than we can keep up with."

"That's not very nice, you know," Weiss said with a slight frown. "I don't reject _everybody_, you know."

"Really?" Jaune said. "Who was the last person you dated?"

Weiss went to open her mouth to speak, but halted before a sound escaped. Deep in thought, she realized that her social status kept most people from asking her out. "W-well...two cases a trend does not make!" she finally blurted.

"Aww," Ruby said. "Aren't you adorable! Weissy's never had a boyfriend before!" She seemed to bounce towards Weiss before she started patting the heiress's head as though she were a rabbit. "There there," she said.

"N-neither have you!" Weiss grumbled. "You've become very liberal with your words ever since you came out of the closet." After a moment she became slightly irritated by Ruby's petting and she flailed her arms to get Ruby off. "What about you two? For someone who's managed to keep her sexuality a secret from even her own family, I find it hard to believe that you've dated anyone, Ruby."

Ruby hesitated before a nervous smile crept onto her lips. "W-well...when you put it that way."

"And Jaune...well, I suppose I shouldn't really express my opinion on your love life. It would be rude."

Jaune frowned slightly. "Do you even realize when you're being mean to people?"

Weiss smirked. "It's payback for teasing me."

Ruby shook her head. "Yang's been a terrible influence on my team," she whispered to Jaune.

"If it's any consolation, Nora's gonna force us all to get diabetes before graduation," Jaune whispered back.

"I worry about you two," Weiss said. "I dread to know what sort of conversations you two will have about me."

"Only that we find you attractive and how awesome we think you are!" Ruby declared.

"So is it a support group or a fan club? I don't get it."

"Uh...a bit of both?" Jaune suggested.

"It can be both," Ruby nodded.

Weiss sighed heavily with a disdainful look. "Do whatever you want." She turned back towards to door. "I'm going to get dinner. You can join me in the cafeteria when you're meeting is done."

"Ca~n do!" Weiss would never admit it, but a smile crept upon her lips as she left the room. Unknown to Weiss, as she made her exit, Ruby's scroll beeped with a message.

Thus had been the lives of RWBY and JNPR during the past two weeks since Ruby so bravely announced her sexuality to her friends. Not a day has passed since where Weiss didn't feel guilty about rejecting her best friend, but just as Yang told her she never avoided Ruby. If anything, the girls were closer now than they ever were before.

Still, even though Ruby made jokes about it now, Weiss knew that deep down she still hurt. The pain of rejection cuts deeper than any blade or claw ever could. Weiss might not really care for Jaune all too much, but she did appreciate him as a friend, especially now. Jaune and Ruby had become fast friends since the day they arrived at Beacon, and Ruby's revelation made them grow even closer as friends. It seemed that the two had more in common than Weiss ever really knew. Sure, Jaune wasn't gay, but everything else he and Ruby shared in common. In fact, if Ruby had been straight she probably would have wanted to date the blonde knight in training. Weiss laughed inwardly at the mental image of the two of them together. The socially awkward atmosphere of every dinner date would be cringe worthy.

Perhaps someday Ruby would find a woman to return her affection. Weiss was sorry that she could not, but the fact remained that Weiss wasn't hardwired that way. Sexuality isn't usually a choice; you're either one sexuality or another with several possible outcomes. Weiss drew what could be considered the "biologically correct" straw in the matter. Nature intended sexual attraction to exist between the opposite sexes. In her mind, homosexuality was a mutation; something happening on the biological level that normally wouldn't happen. However, after getting to know Ruby and learning of her sexual orientation, she now felt that to be a cold, heartless, and thoughtless way to describe homosexuality. While she wouldn't retract those thoughts, she did add to them.

_You love who you love, and you should never apologize for it._ In that regard, Weiss was very thankful for Ruby's affection, and she honestly hoped that she would one day find such a woman to return the girl's love. _She deserves that much._

* * *

Ruby stood on the roof of her dorm by herself. The sun had long since set, and the crumbling moon was rising high into the sky, casting a beautiful pale light upon the world below. Ruby bathed herself in the moonlight, lost in her own little world with thoughts of her friends. More than once she thought of Weiss. Though rejected as she was, she couldn't let go of her love for Weiss. Not just yet. She was finding it easier to live with her feelings now that she had expressed them, and given time she was confident that she could move on from Weiss and find another love. But for now, her heart belonged to the heiress, and the thought that she was here tonight, beneath this very moonlight, made her soul soar with happiness. _That must be true love,_ she thought._ Even if I can't have her, I'm still happy that she's in my world._

But she wasn't here to be introspective. No, she had received a message from one of her friends to meet up here in private. Why, she couldn't imagine. But, as Ruby would always claim to be a good friend, she dutifully obeyed the request and waiting patiently for the one who contacted her.

"Did you wait long?" came the voice of Pyrrha from behind.

Ruby smiled and turned. "Nah, it's fine. I kinda like it here at night. The moon...it gets me thinking."

Pyrrha returned the smile. "What about?"

Ruby turned again and stared with wonder at the moon. "Remember how I said I like fairy tales?" Pyrrha nodded, though Ruby couldn't see it. "I grew up with tons of them. Many my dad would read to me, sometimes Yang would read them, and occasionally my uncle Qrow would tell me the odd story. But then there was my mother..." Ruby grew somber for a moment before she smiled again. "She ignited my love for fairy tales. But, she was never content to just read them to me. She felt that the same stories had been told too many times. Instead, she'd make them up for me. Every night was a different story that she would adlib. Granted, each story had a lesson or a meaning, she would simply tell a story around the message that she had in mind for the night."

"To this day, I don't remember enough about the stories to confidently tell them again. I get the basic concepts, but that's it. All but one, that is. There was one story that has stuck with me every since I was a little girl. My mother told it to me just one time, but I remember every little word to it." She turned to face Pyrrha again. "Would you like to hear it?"

Pyrrha approached with a smile, postponing the thought that she was the one who wanted to talk to Ruby. "I'd love to."

Ruby nodded. "There was once, in the days long since passed, an archeologists grandson. He was young and naive, but he loved history, and the ruins of lost civilizations. The stories he could learn from them drove him into deeper and darker pits, where he'd encounter evil beasts who lurked the shadows. He didn't care for his own safety, so long as he could find out about the past. He knew that once it was told that mankind had come from the moon, and that an ancient goddess brought them down to Remnant to save them from a calamity. It was that calamity that shattered the moon. He didn't know if it was true, but every ruin he explored pointed in this direction. He had to know the truth, so he hunted and explored even more."

"One day, he saw an ancient spire off on the distance. A shining, ocean blue was the color of its stone, and it pointed directly at the moon. He was about to race towards it when a pale white light erupted from the tower and stretched all the way to the moon above; inside of that light was an even brighter ball of light that descended from the heavens. He ran into the spire to investigate."

"And inside he found a girl. She was the most beautiful creature ever to grace this world, and he knew that she had come from the moon. She was the daughter of the goddess, and she had come to protect Remnant from a calamity, similar to the one that shattered the moon in the first place. He vowed to help her in her quest, and together the two of them stopped the calamity." She looked at Pyrrha. "It goes more in depth than that, but I'm just giving you the basic rundown."

Pyrrha laughed lightly. "That's fine. Do continue."

Ruby smiled. "During their time together, the young man fell in love with the girl. She, however, had to return to the moon once the world was saved. She didn't want to, but she had sworn to her mother, the goddess, that she would patiently await mankind's return to the moon. The boy simply couldn't live without her. He embarked on an epic quest that took him across the globe in search of a way to see her again, until her found another ruin similar to the spire where he first met his love. Through that tower's magic, he was transported to the moon where he would spend the rest of his life with his love."

"And thanks to that boy, mankind _did_ return to the moon," Ruby said with a smile. "I know my mother made it up, but I like to imagine that _if_ it were true, that the two of them are still having their happily ever after somewhere up there." She and Pyrrha both looked up and stared at the moon. "Mother never named it, but I liked to call it _The Lunar Princess_."

Pyrrha nodded. "It's a very lovely story," she stared into Ruby's eyes. "That must be why you're such a romantic."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Pffft. Me? A romantic?"

"I mean it. I can see it in your eyes. I know alot of people think of sexual orientation at face value of sexual intention...that is to say, who you want to have sex with. They never consider that it's possible to actually love someone. I see that in you. You have no lecherous thoughts towards Weiss. You genuinely love her with all your heart."

Ruby blushed, and added jokingly, "Well...it's not fair to say that I have _no_ lecherous thoughts of Weiss. We're all entitled to our dirty thoughts, after all." Ruby looked to Pyrrha. "Does that have something to do with why you called me here?"

"Sort of," Pyrrha said.

"You're...you're not about to come out on me, are you? Because, I'll be honest, you're really attractive and all, but my heart belongs to Weiss."

It was Pyrrha's turn to blush. "N-no, Ruby, I'm very much heterosexual. But, I did want to ask you're opinion on something."

"Oh, alright. What's up?"

"Would you...would find me attractive? Not in the _friendly_ way either like friends normally do, but _actually_ attractive."

Ruby arched an eyebrow. "I...don't understand the question."

Pyrrha sighed. "Do you think...do you think I'm...er..._sexy_. As in, assuming Weiss wasn't your goal, would you see me as girlfriend material?"

Ruby froze. "I...uh...really don't think..."

"Ruby, please...just be honest with me. I need to know."

"Well...if you really want to know." She cleared her throat. "As far as your personality is concerned, you are kind hearted and very sweet. You like to help people and you put others before yourself. You'd be a tough girlfriend because you'd be very difficult to simply do favors for and hard to buy gifts for. Otherwise, yes, I think I'd like you as a girlfriend."

"And...physically?"

Ruby blushed. "Uh...specifics?"

"If you can."

"_Personally_, your boobs are a little too big to my liking, but you have a wonderful skin tone, you have a wonderful balance of body fat and muscle tone to the point where you're a healthy weight without looking like a chiseled statue of godly muscle. Never was too big on overly muscular girls. In fact, I think too much muscle looks ugly on guys too, but that's just me. Your hair is very silky and pretty, the pony tail is _to die for_, and your eyes are this beautiful shade of emerald. To be brutally honest, if I were a sex fiend, you'd possibly be on my list. Thankfully, I'm both _not_ a sex fiend, and I'm a virgin...so there's that." Ruby blushed heavily with a nervous laugh. "Probably didn't need to add that last bit."

Pyrrha nodded. "Well, I am too, so don't worry about it."

"So...why did you want to know my opinion?"

Pyrrha sighed. "You and Jaune are a lot alike. I mean, you're a better fighter, but your personalities are pretty similar."

"ADHD and social awkwardness will do that," Ruby joked.

"Agreed. But it makes me wonder...if you can view me as a possible romantic partner, then why can't Jaune?"

"Oh," Ruby said. "Oh~~~, that's what this is about." She gave a smile similar to a Cheshire cat. "Is my little Pyrrha working up the nerve to finally tell the love of her life how she feels?"

Pyrrha shook her head. "I want to. I really, _really_ want to...but he's got his eyes on Weiss for some reason."

Ruby scoffed. "I don't blame him." Glancing back at Pyrrha, she immediately gave an apologetic look. "B-but, I mean, you really, _really_ deserve to have your feelings noticed. I know what it's like to bottle those kinds of feelings up for a long time. It starts to get to you after a while."

"That it does," Pyrrha agreed. "What should I do?"

"Do what I did," the brunette said flatly. "Open up and tell him how you really feel. Don't drop subtle hints like you have been, don't use an excuse to explain away your behavior. Just flat out tell him that you love him."

"But...what if he rejects me?" Pyrrha asked without thinking.

Ruby almost became angry. Almost. "That's the risk we forlorn lovers take, Pyrrha. I don't have Weiss for my own like I hoped I would. She rejected me. But there's an old saying; it's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. Trust me, regardless of how it turns out you will get absolution from either result. One way or the other, you'll get closure, and you'll feel a lot better for it. Trust me."

Pyrrha nodded. "Th-thank you, Ruby. I'll...I'll think about."

Pyrrha turned to walk away, but her expression seemed kind of sad to Ruby. Ruby leapt to catch up to her. "Hey, Pyrrha!" she called, gaining the red head's attention. Pyrrha turned, and Ruby did the unexpected. She placed her lips upon Pyrrha's and gave her a gentle kiss. Pyrrha was taken aback by the gesture and didn't know how to react. Ruby parted and Pyrrha stepped back with a blush on her face and a hand on her lips. "Sorry," Ruby said sheepishly. "But you didn't look happy. I thought I'd cheer you up."

"R-ruby," Pyrrha said nervously. "That was my first..."

"Ah ah ah!" Ruby said with her finger up, flashing a award winning smile. "No it wasn't. That was just..._motivation_. Think of it as practice for Jaune. Let's face it; he'd be a fool to reject you."

Pyrrha smiled. "Thank you, Ruby. Good night."

"Nighty night!"

With that, the two girls parted ways. Pyrrha returned inside where she contemplated her options. Ruby remained and stared longingly at the moon. _Someday, I'll get my happily ever after_, she thought. _What's a girl to do but hope._ She turned and entered the building, working her way down to her dorm to go to bed.

But neither she nor Pyrrha were aware of Cardin Winchester sitting on his window sill, listening in on their conversation. He hadn't heard their last exchange or their kiss, but he heard enough. He grinned at the thought of seeing Ruby the next day. _We got ourselves a queer in our class._

* * *

La vie est une fleur dont l'amour est le miel. [Life is a flower of which love is the honey]

* * *

**Author's Note**

Five months since I first wrote the first chapter. I am sorry for the wait. I had toyed and toyed and _toyed_ with continuing this story for ages. I now have a story to tell, and a clear message. Also, when I said I was going to end it with a proverb in chapter 1's update, that's a typo. I meant that each _chapter_ will end with a proverb. Namely a proverb related to love and from the language that the chapter is named from.

I don't know how often I'll update this. I've still got several other fics I'm working on. I swear to God I overwork myself. How many fics am I even writing? I've lost count. Including my original work, I _really_ don't know how much writing I do in a week's time. I write _everything_. If I had a final word count for everything I've written this year alone I think I'd shit some bricks and build a house.

Anyway, I hope you like this next installment in the _Individualism_ series...that's what I'm gonna refer to this as. Mainly because _A Rose By Any Other Name_ is too damn much to type over and over. And, who's to say that I won't write a sequel when its over with? My message is to preach individuality; there's no such thing as normal, as we are all unique and _normal _would contradict that truth. Homosexuality is just one aspect of being unique. There are almost an infinite number of possible stories to come from individuality. I heavily believe in expressing our individuality as human beings. I think it comes with the territory of being an author, which is a variant of an artist. I am an artist, imagination is my canvas, and words are my paint. Or is it the other way around? I think it works either way. Am I drifting off topic? Damn, I really do write my author's notes in the same manner that I actually speak.

Fun Fact: I'm looking into getting a tattoo. Why? Well, 'why the hell not' is my question.

Fun Fact 2.0: Forgot the mention this, but Ruby's little "fairy tale" is an actual story, though not in the written format. It was the first story that I ever fell in love with, and I carry it in my heart every day. Everything I say, do, and write can find a root that leads back to that story. It's an old PlayStation game from either the late 90's, or 2000. I can't remember. I was a wee lad back then. The game is called _Lunar 2: Eternal Blue._ It's actually my favorite game of all time. Nothing in this world will ever beat it in my mind. I admit that there are better games out there...but in the words of Captain Scott from an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation: "It's like the first time you fall in love. More will come, but you'll never love a woman quite like that again."

Sequentem tempus. [Until next time.]


End file.
